The Wiarton Nationals got off to a hot start at their first ever Softball Canada Men’s Canadian Fast Pitch Championship by beating Saskatchewan’s Bulyea Rustlers 6-1 on Wednesday afternoon.

The Nats’ tournament pick-ups Mitch Pringle and Ty Sebastian led the way with two RBIs apiece in the victory as Wiarton opened up tournament play in St. Croix, Nova Scotia.

Sebastian smacked the game’s only home run.

Travis Jones and Troy Barfoot also drove in runs for the Nationals while Caleb Keeshig struck out 11 and pitched all seven innings.

“It was nice to get that first win, it sort of calms the nerves a little bit,” said Wiarton’s Brent Thompson.

The Nationals, who play regularly out of the Bluewater Fastball League, are former ISC II World Champions (2015) – but this is their first time on the big Softball Canada stage.

They recruited the Pringle brothers – fresh off a Softball Canada under-23 national championship as members of the Owen Sound Selects – and Sebastian, who is a two-time Canadian champion, to flesh out the roster.

They join Keeshig, Jones and Blake Underwood who are all members of Softball Canada’s player pool for the national team.

“We are confident heading in here,” said Thompson. “It’s always nice to have those young guys come through . . . at this level though every team has those top guys that everyone knows.”

Waiting to give the Nationals a rude welcoming out east are the defending champion and host Mastodons as well as Newfoundland’s Galway Hitmen. The Hitmen won the national championship five-straight times before the Mastodons’ broke the streak last year.

“Newfoundland’s one-through-nine is pretty well the starting lineup for Team Canada,” said Thompson. “They’re the premier players not just in Canada, but the world.”

The Nationals will play six games in three days and then hope to qualify for the playoff round. Depth and planning is key, said Thompson.

“In something like this you can’t just roll the same guys out over and over again,” he said. “You have to win the games, but you also have to be ready to win when the playoffs roll around and have your best nine ready.”

Wiarton brought out four pitchers to Nova Scotia. The rotation will lighten the workload on the hill. Keeshig will pull the heavy duty, but Sebastian, Hepburn and Veenhof will all get a turn if all goes according to plan.

The spotlight was bright on the Nationals for Game 2 on Wednesday in a game against the host Mastodons right after the opening ceremonies.

“We have the opportunity to come in and break some hearts,” said Thompson before the game.

The Mastodons got on the board first in the bottom of the fourth inning when Nick Shailes scored on a fielder’s choice. Then in the next inning Myles Coldwell’s single scored Aaron Harvey and that’s all the hosts would need as they beat Wiarton 2-0 and brought the Nationals record to 1-1 after the first day of competition.

The Nationals continue tournament play on Thursday with an early morning contest against Prince Edward Island before meeting heavy-hitting Newfoundland in the early afternoon.

Thompson said the team is relaxed ahead of the big early contest.

“We can just got out and take our swings. All the pressure is on them.”